Selfies Kill

sort of like this one... there is a little colorful language in this so beware.


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

Indeed a shame. Railroad tracks, highways and many other places are known to be dangerous, yet people continue to flaunt their (perception of) immortality. I consider it sad, but real, "thinning of the herd."



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~ Bill
~ US Pictures .com

Just got back from a quick trip to London on business. My meeting was near the main tourist area of Westminster, Houses of Parliament etc. You would not believe the tourists! And so many of them taking selfies and using selfie sticks or whatever you call them. My taxi on the way to the meeting nearly took out a family who were trying to do a selfie against a landmark background and decided to step backwards into the road to frame it better (screeched to a halt). The taxi on the way back had to swerve to avoid hitting an iphone on a stick that suddenly appeared in front of him as he went around a corner. It doesn't surprise me that people get injured and killed on that basis.

I heard (or maybe read on a discussion post here somewhere) that it is illegal to take photos on railroad tracks in some states. I wish I knew where that list is... My high school students always want to use RR tracks. Then, my next question is that if my state is one of those, and I know the track is decommissioned, is it still illegal as I live in a small town that used to be one of the largest pear orchard until the 70s and a train would pick the pears up and take them to the cannery for the whole US to enjoy (as much as one can enjoy canned fruit). The tracks remain but trains have not rolled through this town since the mid 70s.

In every state you are trespassing on private property when you are on train tracks.

But Edward. Train Tracks are pretty:)
I guess I will have to choose a "Side of the tracks" to shoot from :)

Also keep in mind that some tracks look abandoned, but aren't. The only thing that makes these tracks look active in this shot...



is the train on them!

Lack of common sense is quite dangerous and can even be fatal. They really should make it illegal.

"In every state you are trespassing on private property when you are on train tracks"

That makes driving across them pretty difficult :-)

Richard Reeve
ReevePhotos.com

We did have several threads jump up on the last death, I thought about linking to those but this is a VERY important topic that needs bringing up with regularity.

Just because something seems a good idea at the time (re photography) does not mean it is.

I just read earlier today about a woman taking a selfie with a Bison, which attacked her from behind and tossed her in the air. I believed she survived. Photoshopping one's self in a photo is much safer.

How about this one: http://goo.gl/nsPRVL

Richard Reeve
ReevePhotos.com

Here's the story of the woman in Yellowstone that Randall mentioned. http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/22/travel/yellowstone-woman-bison-attack-selfie/index.html?sr=cnnifb

And then there was the woman who fell off a bridge while taking a selfie --

http://www.thenewstribe.com/2015/07/10/woman-falls-off-bridge-to-death-while-taking-selfie/

"I heard (or maybe read on a discussion post here somewhere) that it is illegal to take photos on railroad tracks in some states. I wish I knew where that list is... My high school students always want to use RR tracks. Then, my next question is that if my state is one of those, and I know the track is decommissioned, is it still illegal as I live in a small town that used to be one of the largest pear orchard until the 70s and a train would pick the pears up and take them to the cannery for the whole US to enjoy (as much as one can enjoy canned fruit). The tracks remain but trains have not rolled through this town since the mid 70s."

First it is illegal in EVERY state to be on the tracks unless you are a train or in one.
Second, just because a track is not in use does not make it ok to be on it. It is still trespassing and those tracks can be put back into use at any time. Trespass at your own risk.

In the article the OP linked, it stated that 30 people had been killed by trains in Washington between 2013-14. That's just ONE state and not a really densely populated one at that. In 2013, 784 people were killed in train related accidents in the US. (source: http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/infrastructure/a3134/how-trains-can-be-silent-killers-16627219/) The article goes on to explain why seemingly smart people turn dumb.

Another excellent article on this subject written by a photographer: http://bonellphotography.blogspot.com/2013/06/train-track-sessions-are-illegal.html

here is the blog I wrote about this --

http://fineartamerica.com/blogs/photographers-killed-while-shooting-trains.html

Updating this thread - here is an incident that happened just 2 weeks ago

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/teen-killed-by-train-was-having-photo-taken-near-tracks-with-girlfriend/2015/09/15/d46f761c-5bc3-11e5-b38e-06883aacba64_story.html

If you must shoot on tracks there are many railroad and trolley museums that will give permission for a nominal fee or a donation. Don't hesitate to ask - you may be pleasantly surprised